Bounding beds



. G. P. NISSEN BOUNDING BEDS Jan. 24,--1961 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 29, 1958 INVENTOR.

5 WWW f; NW 0, aw Mflw am Jan. 24,1961 G. P. NISSEN BOUNDING BEDS 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 29, 1958 IIIIIIIVI INVENTOR. GEORGE NLSJEN BY Jan. 24, 1961 'G. P. NISSEN 2,969,124

' v BOUNDING BEDS Filed Sept. 29, 1958 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 4 INVENTOR. GEOPGE P N/55L /V 24 TWP/Vim.

United States Patent C) 2,969,124 BOUNDING BEDS George P. Nissen, 711 27th St. NE., Cedar Rapids, Iowa Filed Sept. 29, 1958, Ser. No. 764,153 1 Claim. (Cl. 182-139) This invention relates to a bounding bed and more particularly one in which an oval tubular framework may be employed to support the resilient bounding mat, and yet compactly fold it to permit efiicient storage.

It is a primary object of my invention to provide a framework for a bounding bed which is light and'yet rigid against both horizontal and vertical impact forces resulting when an individual bounces upon the device.

' It is yet another object of my invention to provide a framework which may be compactly folded into a vertical mass which may be readily stored.

It is yet another object of my invention to provide a device in which the hinge members of such astructure are in themselves resistant to both vertical and horizontal forces.

It is yet another object of my invention to provide a device in which detachable wheel supports may be positioned on the framework of the bounding bed to permit its easy movement from one place to another.

Other and further features and objects of the invention will be more apparent to those skilled in the art upon a consideration of the accompanying drawings and following specifications, wherein is disclosed a single exemplary embodiment of the inventi n, with the'understanding, however, that such changesrnay be made therein as fall within the scope of the appended claim, without departing from the spirit of the'invention.

In said drawings:

Figure l is a view in perspective ,of a bounding bed constructed according to my invention.

Figure -2 is an enlarged view of the frame member, a portion of the structure being broken away to show the configuration thereof.

Figure 3 is a view in perspective of the bounding bed shown in Figure 1 after it has been folded into position for storage.

Figure 4 is an enlarged side view of a hinge section of the frame member.

Figure 5 is an exploded view in perspective showing the operative portions of the double hinge.

Figure 6 is a longitudinal view of the hinge member showing it in its fully opened position.

Figure 7 is a view in perspective of the hinge bar.

Figure 8 is a schematic view of the bounding bed frame in open position, and

Figure 9 is a schematic view of the bounding bed frame in folded relationship to show the overlapping of the frame ends.

Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to Figure l; a device constructed according to my invention has a rectangular frame member 11 with a bounding bed or sheet 12 positioned within the perimeter of the frame and held by a series of elastic shock cords such as at 13, 14 and 15. The frame member is supported by a pair of foldable U-shaped leg members 16 and 17. The frame member is composed of three sections, the center rails 18 and 19 on opposite sides of the frame, and the two U-shaped end frame members 20 and 21. The U- shaped frame members are joined to the center sections by hinges 22, 23, 24 and 25;

Referring now to Figure 4; the hinge 22 is shown in an enlarged figure. In this view, the center section rail is again indicated as 18, a portion of the U-frame member 21 being afiixed to the opposite half of the hinge. The leg 16 is pivoted in a sleeve 26 which is welded to onehalf of the hinge at 22a on the portion of thehinge which is welded to the center rail. Also welded to this sleeve is a tie rod 27 which extends longitudinally coextensive with the rail member 18 and is joined to a similar sleeve on the hinge 23. l

The tie rod 27 is additionally joined to the rail 18 by a. second sleeve 28 which is welded to both the tie rod and the rail and positioned midway between the two hinges. As will be later described, this second sleeve serves as a bearing for the wheeled supporting dolly 29 Referring again to Figure 4, the sleeve 26 serves a bearing for the leg member 16. A brace member 30 is welded to the U-frame 16 adjacent the hinge at one end and to the base portion of the same U-frame at, '31, as shown in Figure l. i

It is to be noted, in this connection, that the upward thrust of the leg section is applied to the inner half of the hinge 22 and thus to the frame member 18 and the tie rod 27. The same structure appears on the opposite side of the frame and at all four hinged joints. In'this manner, the primary support is beneath the center section of the device. A chain 32 interconnects the tie rod 27 and the leg 16. This chain furnishes additionaltri angular support to the leg member. f 1

The outer end of the main frame 21 is pivoted to the center section as previously described. To interconnect this frame member and the leg members and afiord support to the outer ends of the bounding bed, I have pro.- vided two angular struts 33 and 34. These are hingedto the frame member at 35 and 36 and attached to the leg member by means of sockets 37 and 38. It will be noted that hinges 35 and 36 are T hinged, which hold' the struts in a fixed plane of pivotal rnovement.

Referring again to the frame structure, and more particularly Figure 2; the frame 11 is constructed 'of oval tubular seamless steel, as indicated in the bIQkil PQrtion of the figure. This affords considerably greater rigidity to the structure. In the use of a tumbling bed, both vertical and horizontal forces are present. Vertical forces are normally resisted by the substantially vertical leg members. However, horizontal forces must be absorbed entirely by the frame structure. It will be at once apparent that a corner bend, such as shown in Figure 2, will remain rigid and stable, regardless of the forces applied, since the greater width of the tubing is in the horizontal plane.

Referring now to Figures 5 and 6; I will describe the structure of the double hinge portion in greater detail. As previously set forth, the hinge halves are joined to the center rail such as 18 on one side and 20 on the other. The hinge, indicated generally at 23 is comprised of three separate pieces and is double jointed. The two outer sections 39 and 40 are cast in an oval shape and on their inner ends have recesses such as 41 on hinge half 39 and 42 on hinge half 40. These recesses are approximately half the depth of the casting as indicated at 43 of Figure 5. Nested and pinned in these recesses is the hinge center section 44. This center section includes a longitudinal bar portion in the casting 45 and two wing portions 46a and 47. The upper face of the wing portion is curved to correspond to the curve of the oval tubing. The under side of the wing portion is beveled to mate with a beveled shoulder 48 and 49 of hinge sec- ,tion is co-extensive with the end castings and the oval tubing. The Wings of the center section and the shoul- 'ders of the base of the castings rest against each other to afford lateral support for the hinge and to generally prevent its tendency to twist. The hinge is a double pivoted unit in order that the end frames may be folded to a point parallel with the center section of the bounding bed.

Figure 3 shows the bed in a folded position. For the ,purpose of carrying this bed, I have provided two support members such as 29 and 2%. These support members are pivoted in the sleeve 28 on the main frame.

, To fold the bed, the supports 33 and 34 are removed from the sockets 37 and 38 and pivoted up under the canvas bed in a plane parallel to the frame. The frame 'is then folded into the same plane as the center section, the center section having been swung 90 degrees on the supports 29 and 29a and bearings 28. The opposite end of the bed is similarly folded after the supports on that end have been disconnected. The leg members are piv- .oted on the bearings 26 and therefore can also be folded to the same plane as the center section. It is to be noted that the double hinges permit this overlapping of the various sections of the bed, and even in their open position, afford the necessary lateral stability and rigidity to .the unit.

The relation of the frame section in open position is 'shown in Figure 8, and in folded relation in Figure 9. It will be noted that in folded relationship, the center section B is in a vertical position, the section A is folded upwardly parallel to B, and then the opposite end section C is folded downwardly over section A and parallel to 'both A and B.

It will be seen, from the foregoing description, that I have provided a bounding bed which includes an exceptionally strong and yet flexible frame which permits the bed to be folded into a small area and yet, in use, to be rigid and strong against all forces, either vertical or horizontal.

Although I have described a specific embodiment of my invention, it is apparent that modifications thereof may be made by those skilled in the art. Such modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention as set forth in the appended claim.

I claim as my invention:

A bounding bed comprising a rectangular frame having a sheet resiliently mounted within the perimeter thereof, support means for said frame, said frame comprising a pair of parallel elongate side rails, said rails being oval in cross-section and having their greatest Width in a horizontal plane, each of said oval side rails having a pairof spaced hinge sections therein, each of said hinge sections includinga pair of hinge halves each comprising a body portion having an end secured to the said rail and having a deep vertical slot therein extending down from its top surface and shallow recesses therein extending laterally from the upper portion of said deep slot, said deep slot and said recesses extending to the distal end of said body portion, said slots in the two halves being aligned, a hinge link comprising a plate having apertures respectively in its opposite ends, and cover wings extending laterally from the top thereof, said plate fitting into said aligned vertical slots, said body portions each having a pin bore extending transversely therethrough in alignment respectively with the apertures in said plate, hinge pins extending respectively through said pin bores and apertures and said cover wings extending into said shallow lateral recesses; the upper surface of said plate, cover wings and the sides and bottom of said hinge sections having similar outline to the outline of said oval rails comprising the frame, whereby the strength of the frame in a horizontal direction is enhanced and the upper and side surfaces of said rails and hinge sections present a minimum of upwardly directed inherently harmful projection area.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 255,809 Pfauntz Apr. 4, 1882 509,979 Veitch Dec. 5, 1893 988,083 Ellis Mar. 28, 1911 1,483,979 Luery Feb. 19, 1924 2,534,019 Griswold Dec. 12, 1950 2,542,744 Willens Feb. 20, 1951 2,799,867 Fenner July 23, 1957 FOREIGN PATENTS 19,918 Great Britain 1911 

